Sanding system

ABSTRACT

An abrasive sanding work glove ( 12 ) has a fabric ( 13 ) with an inner first elastomeric cushion coat ( 18 ) and an harder cured coat ( 21 ) cured on the palm and finger fronts. Abrasive particles ( 22 ) are bonded to the cured coat ( 21 ) to provide for a sanding or gripping work tool. A sanding cloth ( 15 ) can be handled by the sanding work glove. The sanding cloth has an abrasive side ( 35 ) with abrasive particles ( 30 ) adhered to the cloth and a back side ( 36 ) that engages with the sanding work glove ( 12 ).

TECHNICAL FIELD

The field of this invention relates to an improved sanding system thatcan apply to a sanding work glove or sanding cloth.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

While power sanding devices have made sanding work easier, there isstill a need for hand sanding. There are many problems with hand sandingwith sandpaper. The stiffness of sandpaper and the inability to get intotight corners results in awkward handling and often incomplete jobs. Thesandpaper back often slips out of any grip to limit the control one hason the sandpaper. When the sandpaper is folded, a permanent crease isformed in the paper backing and the abrasive grit separates from thepaper at the crease.

Many attempts have been made to eliminate sheets of sandpaper byproviding a sanding glove or other sanding device. One advantage of asanding glove is elimination of fatigue due to holding a separate pieceof sandpaper. Another advantage allows the user to sand curved, groovedor more complexly shaped surfaces that may be inaccessible or difficultwith sandpaper. While the general concept of having an abrasive materialattached closely to a worker's hand is well known, none of the previousattempts have been commercially successful. The prior art attempts havecome up short for providing a successful products for a variety ofreasons.

The glove may have been too stiff and uncomfortable to wear. The workermay have lost much dexterity with his hand when the worker was wearing astiff glove such that the glove could not be used as a work glove. Othergloves may have been uncomfortable because they were too hot and did notprovide for adequate breathing or ventilation for extended wear. Othergloves were difficult to manufacture and similarly provided durabilityproblems. Other gloves were clumsy to operate having many abrasive padssecured thereto or having removable wearable sanding surface attachableto the glove through a plurality of snaps.

A suitable interface to secure the abrasive particles directly to theglove fabric has not been heretofore achieved. While rubber coatingsprovide a cushion for the hand, the rubber has a low adhesion power tothe abrasive particles. Secondly, rubber has a high coefficient offriction which prevents the glove from adequately sliding over the woodor plastic work piece if it comes into contact with the work surfaceduring sanding.

Other hand sanding devices included foam blocks with an integrallyformed abrasive surface. These foam blocks have limitations in fittinginto tight corners and providing a tactile feedback. They are alsoclumsy and awkward to hold.

What is needed is an improved hand sanding system that uses a sandingcloth that has an abrasive side and a backside with a sanding grippingglove that can grip and handle the back side of the sanding cloth duringsanding motion but be easily releasable when lifted from the cloth. Whatis also needed is an improved abrasive glove without the above mentionedproblems where workers can use the glove to hand sand complex orotherwise inaccessible surfaces. The sanding glove can also double as awork glove and be used to protect the hand and as a grip to enhance thehold of a paint bush or roller handle as well as a grip device forcontrolling a sanding cloth.

What is needed is a comfortable wearable sanding work glove that isdurable and is suitable for extended wear and provide for sufficientlylow coefficient of friction for the glove. What is also needed is aflexible sanding cloth that can be easily gripped and maneuvered by agripping hand glove but easily disengaged when the glove is lifted fromthe cloth for an improved hand sanding system.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

In accordance to one aspect of the invention, a glove for sandingsurfaces includes a knitted glove having a breathable fabric base. Aflexible elastomeric layer on the exterior palm side section of theglove is adhered to the fabric base. A layer of abrasive particles is onthe elastomeric layer with a connecting layer having a lower coefficientof friction than the flexible elastomeric layer. The connecting layer isconstructed to adhere the layer of abrasive particles onto the flexibleelastomeric layer. Preferably, the connecting layer bonds a proximatesection of the abrasive particles and has thin areas between theabrasive particles to provide a plurality of flexibility point. Theconnecting layer is also substantially harder than the elastomeric layerto provide a secure hold of the abrasive particles to the elastomericlayer.

In one embodiment, a substantial portion of a backside of the glove isfree from the flexible elastomeric coating and is breathable.Preferably, a substantial portion of a backside of finger sections ofthe glove is free from the flexible elastomeric coating and isbreathable.

In one embodiment, the elastomeric layer is a soft rubber material andthe connecting layer is an epoxy material. Alternatively, theelastomeric layer maybe a soft rubber material and the connecting layermaybe a cured urethane material.

According to another aspect of the invention, an abrasive sanding clothhas a flexible cloth layer and abrasive particles secured onto at leastone side of the cloth layer. The abrasive sanding cloth preferably hasits abrasive particles bonded to the cloth layer by an adhesive coatingwhich bonds a proximate end of the abrasive particles onto the cloth.The adhesive coating has thin areas between the abrasive particles toprovide flexibility points to retain flexibility of the flexible clothlayer.

In one embodiment, the cloth layer is a woven textile. In oneembodiment, the adhesive coating is an epoxy material. Alternatively,the adhesive coating may be a cured urethane material.

According to another aspect of the invention, a hand sanding system hasa sanding cloth with an abrasive side and a back side for handling. Agripping glove has gripping sections for providing a high coefficient offriction to engage the back side of the cloth and for moving the sandingcloth sideways but easily engageable and disengageble in a transversevertical direction from the back side of the cloth. Preferably, thesanding cloth has abrasive particles secured onto the sanding cloth by ahardened epoxy. The gripping section of the glove has abrasive particlesadhered onto the glove to provide frictional contact with the sandingcloth when a sanding motion is applied but easily separate from thesanding cloth when lifted away from the sanding cloth.

In one embodiment, the abrasive particles on the sanding cloth and theglove have approximately the same grit size.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference now is made to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an improved hand sanding systemincorporating a sanding and gripping glove and sanding cloth accordingto one embodiment of the invention being used by an operator to sand anobject;

FIG. 2 is a palm side elevational view of the left handed glove similarto that shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a view enlarge fragmentary view of the knit stitching of thefabric of the glove shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 showing the fabric in a stretchedposition;

FIG. 5 shows the glove being worn and in a flexed position along creasesthat correspond to the flexing of the user's hand;

FIG. 6 shows a highly enlarged cross-sectional view taken along lines6-6 in FIG. 5 showing the detail of abrasive particles, connecting theepoxy layer and the flex points in epoxy layer to retain flexibility ofthe fabric and elastomeric layer of the glove;

FIG. 7 illustrates the sanding cloth made of textile material and havingan abrasive retained on one side shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 shows a highly enlarged cross-sectional view in showing thedetail of abrasive particles retained by an epoxy layer and the flexpoints in the epoxy layer to retain flexibility of the cloth;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged view illustrating the use of the sanding glove asa gripping tool for the sanding cloth;

FIG. 10 is a view similar to FIG. 9 showing the glove being anddisengaging from the sanding cloth; and

FIG. 11 shows an alternate embodiment of the glove.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to FIG. 1, an operator 10 is wearing an abrasive sandingwork glove 12 that grips a sanding cloth 15 for sanding a complexlyshaped object 14 such as a fluted column. The abrasive glove 12 may beeither right handed as shown in FIG. 1 or left handed as shown in FIG.2. The abrasive sanding work glove 12 as shown more clearly in FIG. 2 ismade with a knitted fabric 13, i.e. a woven fabric with relatively largestitching and has flexibility and some elasticity between a relaxedposition and a stretched position when worn on a hand. FIGS. 3 and 4illustrate how the woven fabric looks between the relaxed and stretchedposition. The stretched position clearly illustrates the breathabilityof the fabric. The fabric of the knit glove can be cotton or any of wellknown synthetic fiber.

Referring now to FIG. 5, the exterior of the palm side 16 and front sideof the fingers 20 have a soft elastomeric coating 18 on the fabric 13.The first elastomeric layer 18 may be a rubber and have a cushion ortacky feel to it. The fabric 13 may be partially or fully embedded inthe elastomeric layer 18. The elastomeric layer 18 is coated with aplurality of abrasive particles 22. The abrasive particles may bealuminum oxide or a silicate. Diamonds particles are also foreseen whena harder abrasive is required. The abrasive particles are of apredetermined grit depending on the desired application. For manysanding and gripping applications, particles with a grit of 150 aresuitable. It is foreseen that a wide range of grit size are applicableranging from 80 to 400.

Referring now to FIG. 6, the particles 22 are secured onto theelastomeric layer 18 by a second thin harder shell adhesive connectinglayer 21. The thin adhesive connecting layer 21 may be an epoxy or curedurethane or other suitable strong material with good adhesiveproperties. The layer 21 may be sprayed on the abrasive particles 22 andthe elastomeric layer 18 and allowed to dry or be cured. The hardershell layer 21 is substantially thinner than the elastomeric layer 18and the diameter of the abrasive particles 22. As the thin layer 21settles, the adhesion coefficient provides that the material sticks tothe proximate section 23 of the abrasive particles 22. The flex points25 between the particles 22 is the thinnest section of the hard shelllayer 21. Because of the vast plurality of flex points 25 throughout theabrasive particles 22 in layer 21, the glove retains great flexibility.Furthermore, the abrasive particles 22 extend up beyond the adhesivelayer 21 to be exposed and form an abrasive surface 27 thatsubstantially covers layer 21 to sand surfaces. In the shown embodiment,the elastomeric layer 18 is set, cured or dried before application ofthe second layer 21 such that the particles 22 are embedded only in theconnecting layer 21. It is foreseen that the elastomeric layer 18 andabrasive particles 22 can be applied before the elastomeric layer 18 isfully dried such that the particles 22 may also partially extend intolayer 18 and extend entirely through layer 21.

The rubber or soft tacky elastomer of the layer 18 provides cushioningto the hand. The urethane, epoxy or other adhesive material connectinglayer 21 is much harder and has a less coefficient of friction than thelayer 18. The layer 21 by curing or drying to a harder condition alsoprovides a better securement to the abrasive particles than the firstlayer18. Thus the glove 12 provides cushioning but provides neededsliding against the work piece 14 if the layer 21 comes in contact withthe work piece 14. The layer 21 helps prevent the rubber layer 18 fromcoming into direct contact with the work piece 14 and interfering withthe sanding of the work surface with a high coefficient of friction. Inaddition, by lowering the coefficient of friction, with theinterposition of the harder layer 21, the heat build up of the glove isalso reduced during sanding operation.

The backside 24 of the palm 16 and fingers 20 and sides 26 may remainfree of the layers 18, 21 and abrasive particles 22. The backside 24 andsides 26 may have its fabric stretched as shown in FIG. 4 when worn toprovide extra breathability of the glove.

A knit glove with the hard shell 21 forming a plurality of thin flexpoints 25 retains flexibility to contour to the operators handparticularly about natural flex lines 28 shown in FIGS. 2 and 5. Theback side 24 and sides 26 of the fingers 20 retain the flex andelasticity between the relaxed position and the stretched position toallow a formed fit with the operator's hand. The knit fabric at thesides 26 and the back side 24 of the fingers 20 allow for sufficientbreathing of the glove to allow the hand to remain comfortable and dryand prevent the build up of humidity. The lowering of the heat build upalso increases the comfort level of the hand in the glove 12.

The abrasive particles are securely bonded to the coating during thebonding process. The comfort of the glove promotes extended sanding timewithout removal of the glove. The comfort of the glove also allowsextended wear time which allows other uses for the glove such as ageneral protective work glove or as an enhanced grip glove for paintbrush, roller handles or a sanding cloth 15 described below.

In order to vastly increase durability of the glove 12, a sanding cloth15 is used as the primary sanding surface. The cloth 15 has its abrasiveparticles 30 secured directly onto one side 35 of the cloth material 33by an epoxy, urethane or other hard shell layer 31. The urethane, epoxyor other hard shell adhesive layer 31 is sprayed onto the abrasiveparticles 30 and cloth 15 and dried or cured thereon to secure theabrasive particles to the cloth as more clearly shown in FIG. 8. Thecloth remains flexible due to the plurality of thin flex points 37 ofthe adhesive layer between the abrasive particles 30 in much the samefashion as described above for the glove.

The back side 36 of the cloth remains free of abrasive particles. Theglove 12 has its abrasive particles surface 27 free to vertically liftfrom the weight of the cloth 15 as shown in FIG. 10. However whensanding is required, the glove has a very high coefficient of frictionwith respect to the cloth 15 to push and pull it along a sanding surfaceobject 14 as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 9.

In this fashion, the glove provides total control of sanding motion ofthe abrasive cloth over the sanding object 14. The cloth and glove areflexible to provide total conformity to both the hard and sanding worksurface and to provide tactile sensation to feel any roughness i.e.bumps in the work surface through the cloth 15 and glove 12. Grit sizecan be conveniently changed by switching to a sanding cloth with adifferent grit size. The cloth has the ability to wet sand. The backside 36 of the cloth 15 and glove 12 can both be used to wipe dust offthe sanded surface. Furthermore, the glove easily disengages when liftedup from the cloth 15 as illustrated in FIG. 10.

FIG. 11 discloses an alternate embodiment 42 where the back side 44 ofthe glove 42 may also have abrasive particles 22 secured thereto in thesame fashion as above described. The abrasive particles 22 may besecured directly on the fabric 13 via an adhesive epoxy layer or thefabric 13 may have an intervening elastomeric layer. With such a glove,it may be designed to fit on both a right and left hand.

The glove 12 provides total sanding control of a flexible abrasive cloth16 which can sand complicated shapes and get into edges and corners. Thecloth 15 can be reversed for engaging the back side 36 without theabrasive for wiping the sanding surface 14 clean. The glove 12 also byitself can be used for wiping and sanding. In one embodiment, thesanding glove may have the same grit size as the sanding cloth to allowthe glove to be used as touch up sanding.

In this fashion, a superior hand sanding system is incorporated by usinga glove as a gripping tool and a flexible abrasive cloth as the primarysanding instrument to add durability to the glove and provide totalnon-slip control of the sanding cloth on the sanding surface. It is alsoforeseen that the sanding cloth may be made from non-woven cloth ortextile cloth. In certain applications, both sides of the cloth 15 mayhave abrasive particles adhered thereto. In other applications, anon-skid coating may be applied to the back side 36 of the cloth 15. Inother embodiments, the sanding cloth 15 may be handled by a glove withother gripping and non-skid features.

Other variations and modifications are possible without departing fromthe scope and spirit of the present invention as defined by the appendedclaims.

1. A glove for sanding surfaces comprising: a knitted glove having abreathable fabric base; a flexible elastomeric layer on the exteriorpalm side section of the glove and adhered to the fabric base; a layerof abrasive particles on said elastomeric layer; and a connecting layerwith a lower coefficient of friction than said flexible elastomericlayer constructed to adhere said layer of abrasive particles onto saidflexible elastomeric layer and to cover said flexible elastomeric layer.2. A glove for sanding surfaces as defined in claim 1 furthercomprising: said connecting layer bonding the bottom section of saidabrasive particles and having thin areas between said abrasive particlesto provide a plurality of flexibility point of said connecting layer;and said connecting layer being substantially harder than saidelastomeric layer to provide a secure hold of said abrasive particles tosaid elastomeric layer.
 3. A glove as defined in claim 2 furthercomprising: a substantial portion of a backside of said glove being freefrom said flexible elastomeric coating and being breathable.
 4. A gloveas defined in claim 3 further comprising: a substantial portion of abackside of finger sections of said glove being free from said flexibleelastomeric coating and being breathable.
 5. A glove as defined in claim4 further comprising: said elastomeric layer being a soft rubbermaterial; and said connecting layer being an epoxy material.
 6. A gloveas defined in claim 4 further comprising: said elastomeric layer being asoft rubber material; and said connecting layer being a cured urethanematerial.
 7. An abrasive sanding cloth comprising: a flexible clothlayer; and abrasive particles secured onto at least one side of saidcloth layer; said abrasive particles bonded to said cloth layer by anadhesive coating which bonds a proximate end of said abrasive particlesonto said cloth; and said adhesive coating having thin areas betweensaid abrasive particles to provide flexibility points to retainflexibility of said cloth layer.
 8. (canceled)
 9. An abrasive sandingcloth as defined in claim 7 further comprising: said cloth layer being awoven textile.
 10. An abrasive sanding cloth as defined in claim 7further comprising: said adhesive coating being an epoxy material. 11.An abrasive sanding cloth as defined in claim 7 further comprising: saidadhesive coating being a cured urethane material.
 12. A hand sandingsystem comprising: a sanding cloth having an abrasive side and a backside for handling; a gripping glove having gripping sections forproviding a high coefficient of friction to engage said back side ofsaid sanding cloth and for moving said cloth sideways but easilydisengageble in a transverse vertical direction from said back side ofsaid sanding cloth; said sanding cloth having abrasive particles securedonto said cloth by a hardened epoxy; and said gripping glove having itsgripping sections comprising abrasive particles adhered onto said gloveto provide frictional contact with said sanding cloth when a sandingmotion is applied but easily separate from said sanding cloth whenlifted away from said sanding cloth.
 13. (canceled)
 14. (canceled)
 15. Ahand sanding system as defined in claim 14 further comprising: saidabrasive particles on said cloth and said glove having approximately thesame grit size.